Musical Monkey Conjuror Automaton.

Musical Monkey Conjuror Automaton. Paris: Jean Phalibois, ca. 1870s. Mechanical monkey automaton, the figure having a hand-painted paper-mache head, glass eyes, and wire glasses, dressed in wizard’s hat and robe of silk, satin, lace, and foil. Standing at the back of a wooden table with silk and gilt braided drape, under an arched ivy and rose vine, he grasps metal cups, while a Ball Vase and playing cards also rest on the table. Oval ebonized base, antique hand-blown glass dome. The monkeys turns its head side to side and nods, raising one cup, then the other, then both, where items would change, transpose, or disappear (but presently, one side remains empty, and the other reveals a small bauble), as music plays. Height 21”. Cards and bauble recent replacements.